The Elf and the Giant
by KleptoKei
Summary: PCxSten. When Elise city Elf makes a seemingly bad decision with her seemingly best friend, she believes things are ruined between them. She learns that it may not be so, with a little help from Zevran. Little vignettes about the couple.
1. Confession

**A/N: This is my first dragon age fanfic, and I know that everyone hates it, but I'm using my PC from the game. XD This fic doesn't exactly follow game rules, i.e. character romance and stuff, but that doesn't matter. :p**

It had been two days, Elise reminded herself. Two days since she had spent the night with Sten. She moved her feet around the ashy dirt by the campfire. He hadn't spoken a word to her since. _Then again…_ she thought, _he doesn't speak many words to anybody. _Come to think of it, the words he spoke to Morrigan about the act she found out herself were false. He was so gentle, so caring. Very quickly Elise banished the thoughts, and examined her nails in the firelight. They were good friends, and then she had messed everything up. Covered in dirt, and dirt under them. Nothing had changed since she had been living in Denerim, hygiene wise. She hadn't bathed in a while, her nightgown was tattered and carried an assortment of stains.

"Elise…?"

The voice startled her and she scooted into the fire's shadow quickly, adding another stain to the list. Grass stains. She let out a relieved sigh. She thought it was Sten. And she knew in the back of her mind, she hoped it would be him. "…Zevran…"

He sat on the horizontal log next to her. "Enjoying the night, I see? You know Antivans—"

"I _don't care_ what the Antivans do at night." She huffed, pulling her thin legs to her chest and burying her nose into her knees.

He laughed. "My dear, always such a fuss with you. No. I was going to say the Antivans have a knack for spotting a broken heart."

She glared into the fire, thinking that a ray of her glare would bounce off the light and hit him square in his big forehead. "I already told you I wasn't going to sleep with you again. Maybe the Antivans never take a hint."

"So depressing to hear." He muttered. "Not like I was going to miss it. Anyway, I was talking about you and Sten."

"Sten doesn't have a broken heart." Glare, glare, glare, glare, glare.

"I meant you."

"It's none of your business."

"It is if I'm going to be killed by darkspawn because you can only focus on his big, dark—"

"STOP IT."

"—eyes."

"…" She was too embarrassed to say anything, but she could feel his smirk burning into the back of her head. "Have you tried talking to him?"

"…" She twirled around a braid. "…No…"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Well you _are_ his superior. He has to listen to you."

There was a glimmer of hope. "I guess you're right…" Elise stood up. "I'm gonna go talk to him."

"He's by the lake." Was all he could get her to listen to before she bolted off in the direction he pointed.

She ran her way past thorns, sharp sticks in the grass, and even Sandal.

"Enchantment?"

"NotrightnowsorryI'mbusy!"

She spotted him close to the water, but by the time she got there, she was too out of breath to begin to speak. Wheezing, coughing, and bent over in a stained nightgown and dirty hair. How attractive she must look. "S…. ss…."

Sten looked at her quizzically, then, the first words he had spoken to her in days. "You look like you are choking."

"S-s-sten…!" It may have been the humidity or the sound of his voice, but she felt a wet lump form in her throat.

"Yes?"

Elise gripped the front of her gown, suddenly she realized how small an elf was compared to a Qunari. "We… We need to talk…"

"Oh." She saw recognition in his eyes. "Did I… hurt you?"

A blush exploded from her pale cheeks. "N-no…! I mean… I want to talk about… What happened…"

He turned back to the water. "I like this part of a forest. Close to water. It reminds me of my home."

"But Sten, I…"

"It's humid, and there's lots of vegetation. It is… too cold here."

"…"

He heaved a heavy sigh. "We do need to talk… Elise."

She listened to his voice. His words were so finite. So sure. "Sten, I have… feelings for you…"

"You're feelings are your own… You needn't give any to me."

Elise bit her lip. "You don't realize what I'm talking about…"

"We Qunari… do not have these… feelings."

She squished her toes into the warm mud. "Everyone has feelings, Sten…"

"…"

"Maybe your people just call it something different. You know… feelings like happiness, sadness… and love…"

"…" He was silent for a time, not unusual. "Elise…"

"Yes?" Her name sounded so wonderful out of his lips.

He turned to face her, looking down at her with his big, mild eyes. "Then… if we call it something different… I… I understand that I have many feelings to give to you…" A smile lit up his face. "But we are very different…"

She jumped up and looped her arms around his neck. "Sten… we aren't that different…" She felt safe in those arms he encircled around her waist. "I feel your heart beating… the same way mine does…"

There they stayed for a sizeable amount of time. Just the two of them. "I should take you to Seheron someday… I think you'd like it… I know you hate the cold…"

"I would like that, Sten."


	2. Reasons and Excuses

**A/N: Second chapter! :p I hope you like it, and if you do, please review and give feedback! :D**

Over a few chilly days, the fabled group was heading to Orzammar from the docks at Lake Calenhad, and Elise had noticed a change in Sten since they had talked by the lake. He looked for any excuse to just be around her. Not that she minded, none of the others seemed to want to. She wasn't sure why, and she wasn't keen to find out either.

At present they were heading over a rocky mountain pass. Elise attempted to look ahead for any threat to their lives, but was preoccupied by the threat of ice on the rocks under foot. Well, ice, and Sandal. He found it absolutely hilarious to sneak up on her and yell "Boo!" Apparently it was a game, but so far she had not won any points.

Elise looked up for one second, and felt her feet start to give way under her. She felt around for footing, but had stepped onto all ice. Just as she began to fall, she felt two large arms loop under her own. She only had time to blink before Sten had lifted her onto his broad shoulders.

The tiny elf had to take a deep breath, cheeks red. "Thank you, Sten."

"You are welcome, Kadan."

They both heard Alistair's huff in the background. "Sten, why carry her? She's more used to the terrain than you are, and she's wearing armor!" It was true; the Qunari's homeland had no mountains and certainly no ice. The giant was like a fish out of water.

His response was Steely. He didn't like to be second-guessed. "She is one of only two Grey Wardens. She should waste her energy on Darkspawn, not rocks. She is precious."

Alistair's face twisted into a frown as he slipped on ice while voicing, "Well, I am one of only two Wardens. I'm precious too. Will you carry me?"

"No."

"Why not?"

Sten was silent for a bit before answering. "…You are too fat."

"Buh—wha—huh?" He mumbled.

Elise giggled. For once, Sten made no sense, and he didn't care. "Stop eating so much cheese, precious!" She guffawed. A smile tugged at her ride's lips when she sank her fingers into his thick ponytail.

"Wha—the amount of cheese I eat has nothing to do with anything!"

A few more hours of begrudging silence and the sun had begun to set, making it harder to see the ice. "Maybe we should stop and camp for the night," Wynne suggested, always the voice of reason.

Her opinion was unanimously agreed upon. Elise's eyes were drooping and she was beginning to use his head as a pillow. He would squeeze her calf every so often to make sure she wasn't completely despondent, but his last few efforts had been met with a "l'emme alone…"

They trekked for a while longer until a suitable mountain cave was found and camp was set up. Elise and Sten were the only ones left by the fire. She stood up to retire for the night when she heard her name called softly, the way Sten always said it, carefully, like it was a treasure. "Yeah, Sten…?"

"It's cold…"

She nodded. Battle had given her a head thicker than a dwarven helmet. And just as impermeable.

He noticed and elaborated. "You are a Grey Warden, you should not have to suffer these temperatures like a commoner."

Oh… She realized, smiling inwardly.

Excuses, excuses.

"It would be… pertinent of you to sleep in my tent. We Qunaris are born to withstand heat. We radiate it." He always had a reason for everything.

Elise blushed. "Okay, Stennie, I will."

They headed into his tent, and laid down at opposite sides.

"Stennie." He mumbled. "What is that?"

"It's a nickname."

"…What is 'nick'…?"

"It's fun." She giggled lightly.

"Parshaara." He mumbled, his dark face turning rosy. He leaned one large arm over and pulled her close to him. "Unnecessary."

"That's the pot calling the kettle black!"

He was confused. "Kitchenware cannot talk."

"…Good night, Stennie."


End file.
